WHO calls for better and fairer opportunities for physical activity to improve health
This is a one page summary of the press release issued by WHO with the title “WHO calls for better and fairer opportunities for physical activity to improve health”, issued on October 14th, 2021.
Key messages:
What is the problem?
Up to 5 million deaths a year could be averted if the global population was more active, however, many live in areas with little or no access to spaces where they can safely walk, run, cycle or engage in other physical activities.
What are the causes?
Today, the possibility for people to take part in physical activity is uneven and unfair.
This inequity has only gotten worse during the COVID-19 pandemic
There is an urgent need to provide people with better opportunities to live active healthy lives.
What is the call?
WHO today called on decision-makers across the health, sport, education and transport sectors to urgently scale up provision of more inclusive programmes and services and safer environments that promote physical activity in all communities.
The brief highlights the main challenges and opportunities of how countries can build forward a fairer physical activity and sports system,
and calls for all partners to strengthen collaborations and support countries to scale actions on promoting physical activity in all its form, for all ages and abilities.
WHO is calling for industries, civil society and governments, as well as UN agencies to build a common vision for creating more active societies through sport, walking, cycling and playing.”
What are the recommendations?
WHO guidelines recommend everyone is regularly active for mental and physical health benefits.
- Adults should do at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobic activity per week for all adults, and
- an average of 60 minutes per day for children and adolescents.
What are the barriers
To be effective, the global community must address key barriers limiting global progress, namely:
- inadequate and inefficient use of resources;
- insufficient policy, laws and regulatory frameworks; and
- a fragmented delivery system of policy, partnerships and implementation.
What are the actions for implementation?
There are three key actions to help increase participation:
- stronger partnerships across sectors to deliver effective programs, services and safe environments that engage and support everyone to be active;
- stronger governance structures and regulations to ensure environments support safe physical activity and inclusive programs and sport; and
- broader, deeper and innovative financing mechanisms to build sustainable strong system that can provide physical activity and sport for all ages and abilities.
Adults should do at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobic activity per week for all adults, and
an average of 60 minutes per day for children and adolescents.
The Organization’s new advocacy brief, Fair Play: Building a strong physical activity system for more active people, explains how this can happen.
BACKGROUND
Fair Play: Building a strong physical activity system for more active people is an advocacy brief calling for urgent actions.
It is responding to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ call for sport and physical activity to broaden its contribution to global efforts to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, and his calling on the global community to join up and work together to implement the effective solutions outlined in the global action plan on physical activity 2018–2030 in all countries, especially to support children, older adults and people living with disabilities.
Solutions that work include sustained community campaigns, inclusive programs in local communities, and safer environments that support more walking and cycling, for everyone.
WHO encourages countries to implement the policy actions outlined in the WHO Global action plan on physical activity 2018–2030 to achieve the target of an increase in physical activity by 15% by 2030.
You can download the advocacy brief here.
Originally published at https://www.who.int on October 14, 2021.Fair Play: Building a strong physical activity system for more active people
An advocacy brief calling for stronger multisectoral action to promote and enable more physical activity through…www.who.int
Names cited:
- Zsuzsanna Jakab, WHO Deputy Director-General;
- Dr Fiona Bull, Head of the Physical Activity Unit;
- Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary General
